Chongzuo Ecology Park

Chongzuo Ecology Park (崇左生态公园, chóngzuŏ shēngtài gōngyuán), a small spread of limestone hills and flat valleys, was created to protect the endangered and endemic white-headed langur (白头叶猴, baítóu yèhóu) whose entire population numbers just 700 animals. The reserve is 15km southeast of CHONGZUO (崇左, chóngzuŏ), a small city around halfway down the rail line between Nanning and Pingxiang. It’s easier, however, to get here by bus from Nanning’s Jiangnan station – ask the driver to drop you at the park gates.

There are 250 monkeys in the reserve, and your chance of seeing some – albeit at a distance, as they spend much of their time bouncing around clifftops – is good. They form groups of around ten individuals, headed by a single adult male; the black-bodied adults have white heads and tail tips, and spend much of their time eating leaves (though they also like fruit and flowers). The babies, however, are golden all over, darkening during their first two years.